Lately, I have had it in my head to learn to play Maple Leaf Rag, the Scott Joplin classic. I have heard it several times on Sirius radio's classical pops station. Sometimes I think they have a pile of about twenty or thirty numbers they just keep repeating over and over.
Anyway, I want to learn to play Maple Leaf Rag. I learned a Joplin rag in high school when I took piano lessons from Mr. Stevesand. Mr. Stevesand was an eccentric bachelor type who lived in a house out in the country. He taught math at a middle school during the week, but on weekends he taught piano on a lovely old baby grand. He must have been quite a pianist in his younger thinner days, but in his older thicker days, his fingers were like clumsy sausages, and he wasn't as accurate as he would have liked. He did help me through the rag, though.
My mother heard me playing it at home one day and asked what it was. I said, "The Entertainer," by Scott Joplin. You would have thought I had said it was written by Satan himself. She did not want anything in her house that had anything to do with anyone with the name of Joplin, all because Janice Joplin was such an animal in her opinion. She was a filthy, poorly behaved young woman with a voice like a frog. Just look at her. She ought to be slapped. Why anyone in their right mind would listen to that garbage is just beyond belief.
So, no more Scott Joplin, at least no mention of Scott Joplin. Any time my mother heard a rag being played on the family piano, and she stopped to ask what it was I was playing, I would say something vague, like "it's a rag of some kind. I don't know who wrote it."
Well, now, years and years and years after my last lesson with funky Mr. Stevesand and his stand-up hair and thick glasses, I am attempting to learn Maple Leaf Rag. I just bought it today, so it will take quite a while to get to where I even know the notes.
Here. Look at these people. Do they look anything alike at all, I ask you?
Anyway, I want to learn to play Maple Leaf Rag. I learned a Joplin rag in high school when I took piano lessons from Mr. Stevesand. Mr. Stevesand was an eccentric bachelor type who lived in a house out in the country. He taught math at a middle school during the week, but on weekends he taught piano on a lovely old baby grand. He must have been quite a pianist in his younger thinner days, but in his older thicker days, his fingers were like clumsy sausages, and he wasn't as accurate as he would have liked. He did help me through the rag, though.
My mother heard me playing it at home one day and asked what it was. I said, "The Entertainer," by Scott Joplin. You would have thought I had said it was written by Satan himself. She did not want anything in her house that had anything to do with anyone with the name of Joplin, all because Janice Joplin was such an animal in her opinion. She was a filthy, poorly behaved young woman with a voice like a frog. Just look at her. She ought to be slapped. Why anyone in their right mind would listen to that garbage is just beyond belief.
So, no more Scott Joplin, at least no mention of Scott Joplin. Any time my mother heard a rag being played on the family piano, and she stopped to ask what it was I was playing, I would say something vague, like "it's a rag of some kind. I don't know who wrote it."
Well, now, years and years and years after my last lesson with funky Mr. Stevesand and his stand-up hair and thick glasses, I am attempting to learn Maple Leaf Rag. I just bought it today, so it will take quite a while to get to where I even know the notes.
Here. Look at these people. Do they look anything alike at all, I ask you?
Comments
I remember trying Maple Leaf Rag.
Yikes!
It made me want to chop off my left hand and sounded like someone throwing a piano down a hill.
GOOD LUCK!!!!!!!!!
Religious moms. They provide endless entertainment (and therapy bills).
My mom happened to love "The Entertainer," though, and she had a soft spot for our dear Janis.
Good luck. You'll have to post a recording.